"'Customer Trust' Is Most Important... Always Faithful to the Duty of Explanation"

Seong Ji-seon, Hanwha Investment & Securities Bundang Branch PB, Selected as '2019 Outstanding Fund Sales Employee'

On the afternoon of the 20th, Seong Ji-seon, Deputy Manager, is taking a commemorative photo holding the '2019 Outstanding Fund Sales Employee' certificate at the Hanwha Investment & Securities headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul. (Photo by Hanwha Investment & Securities)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Bo-ryeong] "I believe the fundamental value of the financial industry is trust."

On the afternoon of the 20th, Sung Ji-seon (39), Deputy General Manager at Hanwha Investment & Securities, said this in an interview with Asia Economy at the Hanwha Investment & Securities headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul. She had just returned from an awards ceremony where she was recognized as one of the '2019 Outstanding Fund Sales Employees' selected by the Korea Financial Investment Investor Protection Foundation.

The Outstanding Fund Sales Employee award is given to those who not only strictly comply with investor protection regulations during fund consultations but also demonstrate high-quality consultation and exceptional expertise. Last year, 28 companies including banks, securities firms, and insurance companies, with 450 branches, were evaluated.

Sung, who works as a Private Banker (PB) at Hanwha Investment & Securities Bundang branch, explained, "I think I received good evaluations because I carefully understood the customer's preferences and recommended products accordingly, spending a lot of time explaining the risks. The company also upholds 'rightful business practices' as its motto, which aligns well with my approach."

It takes about 40 minutes to explain investment products to one customer. More time is devoted to financially vulnerable consumers. Sung emphasized, "When I explain the good aspects, customers often say they will sign up unconditionally, but even if it seems good when selling, if pushed too hard, it will eventually backfire."

She added, "For elderly customers, those who have only dealt with banks, or first-time investors, I do not rush them to sign up immediately. Many say 'please handle it for me,' but in such cases, I tell them to think it over slowly and come back."

Sung cited 'trust' as the most important value. She said, "Even if you do well nine times, if you make one mistake, the customer may leave entirely, so you must always fulfill your duty to explain. When customers ask me questions, I need to be able to answer them so that we can trust each other and achieve a win-win situation." She further explained, "Simply put, it's like being the instructor sitting beside you during driving lessons."

To provide high-quality information to customers, Sung constantly studies. Since last year, she has been taking a 4-week real estate course once every quarter. This is because many customers' assets are mostly in real estate, and they often ask questions related to taxes and other real estate matters. She also strives to maintain good relationships with experts whom she can immediately consult when she is unsure. When asked about the most rewarding moment, she smiled and said, "When customers say, 'Deputy General Manager Sung explained it well, so I understood it clearly.'"

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.